Spiritual: By Accident or Intent?

1 Thessalonians 5:19“Do not quench the Spirit. . .”

Ephesians 4:30 “Do
not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of
redemption.”

God wants you to be all
you are capable of being in Jesus Christ. Why? God wants you to intentionally
focus your physical existence on the time that occurred when He surveyed all He
made and said, “It is good!” Your distant ancestors were included in that
statement!

There seems to be at
least three classifications of people. (1) Those who have no interest in
spiritual matters. To them, the only important consideration in existence is
the physical. They prefer to indulge the physical while giving little thought
to the spiritual.

(2) Those who wish to
give just enough consideration to the spiritual to avoid disaster. It is not so
much that they are afraid of hell as it is that they do not wish to go to hell
if it exists. It is not so much that they wish to go to heaven, but they would
like heaven to be their ‘fall back’ plan if there happens to be an eternity and
heaven.

(3) Those who wish to use
physical realities to enhance spiritual realities. These are fully convinced
that we humans are spiritual beings designed to exist with God Himself. They
view life as an investment. By choice, they invest the physical in the
spiritual.

In a huge
oversimplification, among those who acknowledge spiritual existence is at least
a possibility, there seems to be two general classifications [with many hybrid
classifications]: Those who wish to be spiritual by accident, and those who wish
to be spiritual on purpose. Christians seek to be spiritual on purpose.

For a moment, consider
spiritual existence from a genuine Christian perspective [with so many
counterfeit perspectives declaring to be Christian, this is not a simple
challenge]. From the genuine Christian perspective, the physical is temporary
and the spiritual is eternal. The spiritual, not the physical, addresses who we
really are—to the extent that the spiritual defines the physical rather than the
physical defining the spiritual. The goal is complex but also simple: the goal
is to allow God to define who and what we are.

Paul’s admonition to
Christians in Thessalonia and Ephesus: “Do not resist God’s influence in your
lives.” To them, God’s Spirit was God’s influence as they lived in corrupt
environments, corrupt societies, and corrupt communities. On many occasions, it
was easier to hide God’s influence on them than display God’s influence on
them. Often it was simpler to behave in ways that made it harder for God to be
a living influence in them. It is just so much more convenient to be ungodly in
an ‘unspiritual’ environment!

What about you? Are
you spiritual in all environments because that is what you want?